Father Donald Eagleson
Diocese of San Jose (Diocese of Santa Rosa) (Congregation of the Holy Cross)
Ordained: 1985
Dead: 2004
Assignment History:
- Pre-1985: Moreau High School (Brother of the Holy Cross) (Hayward, CA)
- 1985-1990: St. Joseph (Crescent City, CA)
- 1986-1987: St. Vincent de Paul (Petaluma, CA)
- 1985-1990: St. Mary’s (Arcata, CA)
- 1990: St. Bernard’s Church (Eureka, CA)
- 1990-2003: Sacred Heart Church (Eureka, CA)
- 2003-2004: Retired, Nazareth House (San Rafael, CA)
Summary of Sexual Abuse Allegations against Father Donald Eagleson:
Fr. Donald Eagleson was a Brother of the Holy Cross religious order before he was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Santa Rosa in 1985 and served in the Diocese of San Jose. According to media reports, in April 2002, he was accused of child sexual abuse in approximately 1971 at Moreau High School in Hayward, CA. In November 2002, another allegation of child sexual abuse that occurred in 1971 surfaced, and he was suspended. Santa Rosa Bishop Daniel Walsh came under attack in 2005 when he didn’t tell the parish’s congregants of what happened until a year later.
Fr. Eagleson was named in a civil lawsuit which resulted in a partial settlement in 2005. In 2019, his name appeared on the Dioceses of Santa Rosa and Oaklands’ list of clergy credibly accused of sex abuse of minors. One of the survivors was a boy who was a former student at Moreau High School in Hayward, California.
Fr. Eagleson died in 2004.
Horowitz Law is a law firm representing victims and survivors of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and other clergy in the Diocese of San Jose in California. If you need a lawyer because you were sexually abused by a priest in one of California’s Catholic dioceses, contact our office today. Although many years have passed, those abused by Catholic clergy in the Diocese of San Jose now have legal options due to a temporary change in the law, but filing deadlines will apply so do not delay in reaching out to us. Our lawyers have decades of experience representing survivors of clergy sexual abuse in California and nationwide. We can help.
Contact us toll-free at 888-283-9922 or [email protected] to discuss your options today.